[Blog](https://scrapfly.io/blog) / [proxies](https://scrapfly.io/blog/tag/proxies) / [6 Best Datacenter Proxy Providers for Web Scraping in 2026](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/the-best-datacenter-proxies) # 6 Best Datacenter Proxy Providers for Web Scraping in 2026 by [Ziad Shamndy](https://scrapfly.io/blog/author/ziad) Aug 27, 2026 10 min read [\#proxies](https://scrapfly.io/blog/tag/proxies) [ ](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies "Share on LinkedIn") [ ](https://x.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies&text=6%20Best%20Datacenter%20Proxy%20Providers%20for%20Web%20Scraping%20in%202026 "Share on X") [ ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies "Share on Facebook") Summarize this article with [ ](https://chat.openai.com/?q=Summarize%20this%20article%20and%20explain%20how%20Scrapfly%20helps%20me%20scrape%20any%20website%20at%20scale%20and%20bypass%20anti-bot%20systems%20for%20my%20use%20case%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies) [ ](https://claude.ai/new?q=Summarize%20this%20article%20and%20explain%20how%20Scrapfly%20helps%20me%20scrape%20any%20website%20at%20scale%20and%20bypass%20anti-bot%20systems%20for%20my%20use%20case%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies) [ ](https://x.com/i/grok?text=Summarize%20this%20article%20and%20explain%20how%20Scrapfly%20helps%20me%20scrape%20any%20website%20at%20scale%20and%20bypass%20anti-bot%20systems%20for%20my%20use%20case%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies) [ ](https://www.perplexity.ai/search/new?q=Summarize%20this%20article%20and%20explain%20how%20Scrapfly%20helps%20me%20scrape%20any%20website%20at%20scale%20and%20bypass%20anti-bot%20systems%20for%20my%20use%20case%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies) [ ](https://www.google.com/search?udm=50&aep=11&q=Summarize%20this%20article%20and%20explain%20how%20Scrapfly%20helps%20me%20scrape%20any%20website%20at%20scale%20and%20bypass%20anti-bot%20systems%20for%20my%20use%20case%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fscrapfly.io%2Fblog%2Fposts%2Fthe-best-datacenter-proxies) A residential proxy list can look identical whether its IPs come from direct ISP partnerships or a phone's background app SDK. That difference decides whether a target sees a real user or a script wearing a disguise. This guide ranks the 6 residential proxy providers worth considering for web scraping in 2026, split between raw IP pools sold by the gigabyte and managed proxy APIs that bundle in anti-bot handling. ## Key Takeaways A quick summary before the full breakdown: - Residential proxies use real ISP-assigned IPs, harder to blocklist than datacenter IPs, but pricier and less stable. - Raw pools (Oxylabs, Bright Data, Decodo, NetNut) sell IP access by the gigabyte. Anti-bot bypass and JS rendering cost extra. - Managed APIs (Scrapfly, Zyte API) bundle proxy selection, anti-bot bypass, and JS rendering into one price. - Sourcing matters as much as pool size. NetNut uses direct ISP partnerships; most others route through app SDKs. - Pricing structure beats headline numbers. Per-GB billing punishes retries; per-request and credit-based pricing does not. **Get web scraping tips in your inbox**Trusted by 100K+ developers and 30K+ enterprises. Unsubscribe anytime. ## Which Residential Proxy Provider Should You Use? There is no single best residential proxy provider. The right pick depends on whether raw IP access is needed, or a managed API that also handles anti-bot defenses and JavaScript rendering. That split runs through every entry in this guide. A raw residential pool hands over IP access and leaves blocking, retries, and rendering as the buyer's problem to solve. A managed proxy API instead sells one request that already includes proxy selection, retry logic, and often JavaScript rendering. That convenience shows up in the price per request, not per gigabyte. Here is the quick version by job: - A managed API with anti-bot bypass built in: reach for Scrapfly or Zyte API. - Enterprise-scale raw IP volume with granular geo-targeting: reach for Oxylabs or Bright Data. - A more accessible entry point for a smaller raw-pool budget: reach for Decodo. - ISP-sourced stability instead of peer-to-peer sourcing: reach for NetNut. The table below lines up all 6 providers against the axes that actually decide which one fits a given job: | Provider | Category | Sourcing Model | Pool Size | Countries | Native Anti-Bot Bypass | Native JS Rendering | Pricing Model | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Scrapfly | Managed proxy API | Residential and datacenter blend | Not publicly disclosed | 190+ | Yes | Yes | Credit-based, flat per request | | Oxylabs | Raw residential pool | Peer-to-peer / app SDK network | ~175M+ IPs | 195+ | No, sold separately | No, sold separately | Per-GB, tiered by volume | | Bright Data | Raw residential pool | Peer-to-peer / app SDK network | ~72M+ IPs | 195 | No, sold separately | No, sold separately | Per-GB, tiered by volume | | Decodo (formerly Smartproxy) | Raw residential pool | Peer-to-peer / app SDK network | ~115M+ IPs | 195+ | No | No | Per-GB, lower entry tier | | NetNut | Raw residential pool | Direct ISP partnerships | ~85M+ IPs | 195+ | No, sold separately | No, sold separately | Per-GB, enterprise-leaning | | Zyte API | Managed proxy API | Residential, datacenter, and mobile blend | Not published as a residential-only figure | 195 | Yes | Yes | Per-request, plan-based | Figures above are a 2026-08-21 snapshot pulled from each vendor's own published claims. Re-verify before depending on them, since proxy pool marketing numbers are self-reported and shift often. With the raw-pool-versus-managed-API split on the table, the criteria behind this specific ranking come next. ## How Did We Rank These? Every provider here earned its place on real residential IP sourcing, feature depth relative to what gets advertised, transparency about limits, and how the pricing model behaves under real scraping traffic. Scrapfly is the company publishing this guide, included because its proxy layer is a genuine, evaluable managed-API option. Weigh that against every claim made about Scrapfly here, the same as any other entry. Inclusion runs on one rule. Every provider sells or bundles real residential IP access for web scraping, split into raw pools and managed APIs. This list excludes mobile-only proxy networks and pure datacenter providers, since those solve a narrower problem. A broader proxy-category guide covers that wider ground. [Best Proxy Providers for Web Scraping: Choose by Type (2026)Compare datacenter, residential, ISP, and mobile proxies by decision gate, then choose direct inventory, managed fetching, or an egress optimizer.](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/best-proxy-providers-for-web-scraping) With the criteria set, the ranking starts with the one entry that skips raw proxy shopping entirely. ## 1. Scrapfly: Best Managed Proxy Layer With Built-In Anti-Bot Bypass [Scrapfly's Web Scraping API](https://scrapfly.io/products/web-scraping-api) is the best pick for teams that want proxy selection, retries, and anti-bot handling behind one request instead of assembled by hand. Scrapfly bundles a residential and datacenter proxy layer into its Web Scraping API rather than selling raw proxy access on its own. Geo-targeting covers 190+ countries per Scrapfly's own product page. Where Scrapfly wins is the bundle. Anti-Scraping Protection handles TLS and browser fingerprinting automatically, JavaScript rendering is built in, and failed requests do not consume credits. Pricing runs on a flat credit cost per request rather than bandwidth, so a residential request costs the same whether the response is 2KB or 200KB. Scrapfly's specific residential pool size is not publicly disclosed, unlike the raw-pool vendors ranked below. That is a real transparency gap worth naming plainly, self-interest disclosed above notwithstanding. Scrapfly fits best for teams that would rather pay per successful request than manage proxy rotation, retries, and anti-bot logic themselves. Full setup detail, including proxy country selection, lives in the [proxy documentation](https://scrapfly.io/docs/scrape-api/proxy). Scrapfly's bundle trades pool transparency for convenience. The next four entries take the opposite trade: raw IP access, with anti-bot handling sold as a separate product. ## 2. Oxylabs: Best for Enterprise-Scale Pool Size and Precision Geo-Targeting [Oxylabs](https://scrapfly.io/compare/oxylabs-alternative) is the best pick for teams that need a very large raw residential pool and geo-targeting down to the city or ZIP code level. Oxylabs' residential proxy pool runs to roughly 175M+ IPs across 195+ countries, sourced through a peer-to-peer network of consumer app SDKs rather than direct ISP partnerships. Where Oxylabs wins is sheer scale and targeting precision. City, ZIP code, and coordinate-level geo-targeting go well beyond what most competitors expose on a base residential plan. Anti-bot bypass and JavaScript rendering are not part of the base residential plan. Both live in Oxylabs' separate Web Unblocker and Web Scraper API products, priced and configured on their own. Pricing runs per gigabyte, in tiers that drop at higher committed volume, with a meaningfully higher entry commitment than the accessible end of this list. Oxylabs fits best for teams with the volume and budget to justify enterprise-scale raw IP access and city-level precision. Oxylabs solves scale. The next entry answers a similar brief with an even larger product catalog around the core proxy pool. ## 3. Bright Data: Best for Breadth of Proxy and Data-Collection Products [Bright Data](https://scrapfly.io/compare/brightdata-alternative) (formerly Luminati) is the best pick for teams that want a large residential pool plus a wide catalog of adjacent scraping products under one vendor. Bright Data's commercially available residential pool runs to roughly 72M+ IPs across 195 countries. Marketing materials cite a higher "400M+ monthly" figure describing rotating pool availability rather than distinct concurrent IPs. Where Bright Data wins is breadth. Beyond residential proxies, Bright Data sells a Web Unlocker for CAPTCHA handling, a Scraping Browser for headless-browser unblocking, and a SERP API, all as separate SKUs. The base residential plan does not include anti-bot bypass or JavaScript rendering, matching Oxylabs' split-product structure. Bright Data also offers a pay-as-you-go tier at a materially higher effective rate than committed plans. Bright Data fits best for teams that want one vendor relationship covering residential proxies plus a menu of adjacent, separately priced data-collection tools. Bright Data and Oxylabs both gate anti-bot handling behind separate products and enterprise pricing. The next entry targets a smaller budget with the same raw-pool model. Scrapfly #### Scale your web scraping effortlessly Scrapfly handles proxies, browsers, and anti-bot bypass — so you can focus on data. [Try Free →](https://scrapfly.io/register)## 4. Decodo (formerly Smartproxy): Best Accessible Entry Point for a Raw Residential Pool Decodo is the best pick for smaller teams that want broad country coverage from a raw residential pool without an enterprise-scale minimum commitment. Smartproxy rebranded to Decodo in April 2025. Existing infrastructure, gateway addresses, and account credentials carried over unchanged, only the brand name and domain moved from smartproxy.com to decodo.com. Decodo's residential pool runs to roughly 115M+ IPs, marketed as ethically sourced, across 195+ countries including city and US-state level targeting. Where Decodo wins is accessibility. Entry pricing and minimum commitment sit well below Oxylabs and Bright Data, while country coverage stays competitive with both. Decodo does not bundle anti-bot bypass or JavaScript rendering into its base residential plan either, matching the raw-pool pattern shared by Oxylabs, Bright Data, and NetNut. Decodo fits best for individual developers and smaller teams who want wide geo-targeting without committing to enterprise-scale spend. Anyone following older tutorials still linking to smartproxy.com should confirm the current Decodo domain and docs before wiring up a new integration. Decodo trades pool size for accessibility. The next entry trades pool size for a fundamentally different sourcing model instead. ## 5. NetNut: Best for ISP-Sourced Connection Stability NetNut is the best pick for teams that specifically want residential IPs sourced from direct ISP partnerships rather than a peer-to-peer consumer app network. NetNut's residential pool runs to roughly 85M+ IPs, plus a separate 5M mobile pool, across 195+ countries with country, state, city, and ASN-level targeting. Where NetNut wins is sourcing. Direct ISP infrastructure tends to produce more stable, predictable connections than IPs routed through background SDKs on someone's phone or laptop. Session control runs through the proxy username, supporting per-request rotation, timed sticky sessions, and static IP assignment for logins or multi-step flows. Anti-bot bypass and JavaScript rendering live in NetNut's separate Site Unblocker product, not the base residential plan, matching the split-product pattern seen across the other raw-pool vendors. NetNut fits best for teams that value connection stability over raw pool size and are willing to pay a bit more for ISP-direct sourcing. NetNut closes out the raw-pool half of this list. The final entry returns to the managed-API model, from a vendor already familiar to many Python scrapers. ## 6. Zyte API: Best for Teams Already Inside the Zyte Scraping Stack [Zyte](https://scrapfly.io/compare/zyte-alternative) API is the best pick for teams already using Zyte's broader scraping stack who want proxy handling bundled into the same vendor relationship. Zyte's older Smart Proxy Manager product has been retired for new signups. Zyte API is the current product, and it functions as a managed proxy and unblocking API, not a raw proxy sale. Where Zyte API wins is automation. The service automatically selects proxy type per target URL and layers in anti-bot handling and JavaScript rendering, similar in spirit to Scrapfly's bundled approach. Zyte API covers residential, datacenter, and mobile IPs across 195 countries, though no residential-only pool figure is published the way Oxylabs, Bright Data, Decodo, and NetNut publish theirs. Comparing Zyte API against pure raw-pool vendors is no longer an apples-to-apples exercise, since evaluating it now means evaluating a managed API rather than a bare proxy pool. Zyte API fits best for teams already invested in Zyte's ecosystem, such as Scrapy Cloud users, who want one vendor for crawling infrastructure and proxy handling alike. All 6 providers solve the same underlying problem at different price points and levels of assembly. What is left is trimming the bill once a provider is chosen. ## Reducing Residential Proxy Costs Raw residential proxies billed by the gigabyte reward anything that cuts wasted bandwidth. A few concrete changes make a real difference before the next invoice arrives. Browser automation tools like Puppeteer, Playwright, and Selenium load every image, font, and tracking script by default. Blocking non-critical resources can cut bandwidth usage several times over on a heavy page. - [Blocking resources in Puppeteer](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/how-to-block-resources-in-puppeteer) - [Blocking resources in Playwright](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/how-to-block-resources-in-playwright) - [Blocking image loading in Selenium](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/how-to-block-image-loading-in-selenium) Custom proxy rotation is another lever, where raw IP access allows it. Weighted rotation spreads load away from IPs already showing signs of a block, instead of cycling through addresses at random. [How to Rotate Proxies in Web ScrapingIn this article we explore proxy rotation. How does it affect web scraping success and blocking rates and how can we smartly distribute our traffic through a pool of proxies for the best results.](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/how-to-rotate-proxies-in-web-scraping) ## FAQ Are datacenter proxies safe to use?Using a residential proxy service is generally legal, but what gets scraped through it can still violate a target's terms of service or applicable law. Review the target's policies separately from the proxy provider's own terms. What is the difference between residential and datacenter proxies?Residential proxies route traffic through IPs assigned to real devices by ISPs, which makes them harder to blocklist. Datacenter proxies come from cloud hosting ranges, which cost less but block more easily on protected targets. [The Complete Guide To Using Proxies For Web ScrapingIntroduction to proxy usage in web scraping. What types of proxies are there? How to evaluate proxy providers and avoid common issues.](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/introduction-to-proxies-in-web-scraping) Why did Smartproxy become Decodo?Smartproxy rebranded to Decodo in April 2025 as part of a shift toward positioning itself as a broader web data platform rather than a proxy-only service. The underlying proxy infrastructure did not change. Is Zyte API the same as a residential proxy?Not exactly. Zyte API is a managed proxy and unblocking API that selects proxy type automatically and adds anti-bot handling, closer to Scrapfly's model than to a raw residential pool sold by the gigabyte. ## Conclusion Raw residential pools from Oxylabs, Bright Data, Decodo, and NetNut sell IP access by the gigabyte, leaving anti-bot handling and JavaScript rendering as separate products layered on top. Managed proxy APIs from Scrapfly and Zyte API bundle proxy selection with anti-bot bypass and rendering behind one request, trading raw pool transparency for less assembly work. Sourcing model deserves the same attention as pool size. NetNut's direct ISP partnerships and Decodo's post-rebrand infrastructure both matter more than a headline IP count alone. For teams that would rather not maintain proxy infrastructure at all, [Scrapfly's Web Scraping API](https://scrapfly.io/products/web-scraping-api) folds proxy rotation, anti-bot bypass, and JavaScript rendering into one credit-based request. [ Add as a preferred source ](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=scrapfly.io) Table of Contents Table of Contents- [Key Takeaways](#key-takeaways) - [Which Residential Proxy Provider Should You Use?](#which-residential-proxy-provider-should-you-use) - [How Did We Rank These?](#how-did-we-rank-these) - [1. Scrapfly: Best Managed Proxy Layer With Built-In Anti-Bot Bypass](#1-scrapfly-best-managed-proxy-layer-with-built-in-anti-bot-bypass) - [2. Oxylabs: Best for Enterprise-Scale Pool Size and Precision Geo-Targeting](#2-oxylabs-best-for-enterprise-scale-pool-size-and-precision-geo-targeting) - [3. Bright Data: Best for Breadth of Proxy and Data-Collection Products](#3-bright-data-best-for-breadth-of-proxy-and-data-collection-products) - [4. Decodo (formerly Smartproxy): Best Accessible Entry Point for a Raw Residential Pool](#4-decodo-formerly-smartproxy-best-accessible-entry-point-for-a-raw-residential-pool) - [5. NetNut: Best for ISP-Sourced Connection Stability](#5-netnut-best-for-isp-sourced-connection-stability) - [6. Zyte API: Best for Teams Already Inside the Zyte Scraping Stack](#6-zyte-api-best-for-teams-already-inside-the-zyte-scraping-stack) - [Reducing Residential Proxy Costs](#reducing-residential-proxy-costs) - [FAQ](#faq) - [Conclusion](#conclusion) Join the Newsletter Get monthly web scraping insights Scale Your Web Scraping Anti-bot bypass, browser rendering, and rotating proxies, all in one API. Start with 1,000 free credits. No credit card required 1,000 free API credits Anti-bot bypass included [Start Free](https://scrapfly.io/register) [View Docs](https://scrapfly.io/docs/onboarding) Not ready? Get our newsletter instead. ## Related Articles [ blocking proxies ### 6 Best Residential Proxy Providers for Web Scraping in 2026 Compare six residential proxy providers by public entry path, geo targeting, and session controls, then choose raw inven... ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/top-5-residential-proxy-providers) [ proxies ### Best Proxy Providers for Web Scraping: Choose by Type (2026) Compare datacenter, residential, ISP, and mobile proxies by decision gate, then choose direct inventory, managed fetchin... ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/best-proxy-providers-for-web-scraping) [ blocking proxies ### The Complete Guide To Using Proxies For Web Scraping Introduction to proxy usage in web scraping. What types of proxies are there? How to evaluate proxy providers and avoid ... ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/posts/introduction-to-proxies-in-web-scraping) ## Related Questions - [ Q Mobile vs Residential Proxies - which to choose for scraping? ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/mobile-vs-residential-proxies-whats-the-difference) - [ Q How to Rotate Proxies in Scrapy ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/scrapy-spiders-proxy-rotation) - [ Q What are private proxies and how are they used in scraping? ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/what-are-private-proxies-compared-to-shared) - [ Q What are SOCKS5 proxies and how they compare to HTTP proxies? ](https://scrapfly.io/blog/answers/what-are-socks5-proxies-in-web-scraping) Premium rotating proxies for scraping, **1,000 free credits** [Start Free](https://scrapfly.io/register)